Fletcher plea for England to move on

You might usually hear a few moans from a cricketing tour party when they have to swap an island paradise for somewhere like the grittier environs of Georgetown on the South American mainland.

But, as England flew from St Lucia to Guyana on Sunday night, there will not have been too many in the party unhappy about moving on after 13 days among the honeymooners and yachties.

There was plenty that they would have left behind happily — the memory of where they were on learning of Bob Woolmer’s death; some players’ untimely tippling and Freddie Flintoff’s escapade on a pedalo; defeat by New Zealand accompanied by often unconvincing labours against Canada and Kenya.

Yet England are at least still standing — unlike Pakistan — and for the first time in three World Cups have avoided the ignominy of falling at the first stage.

That much was secured by Saturday’s seven-wicket win over Kenya in probably their best performance of three games to date, however modest an accolade that may be.

Coach Duncan Fletcher said: ‘I was pleased because we’ve been in situations in the past when we might not have won that kind of game so easily.

‘It was a difficult match for us. We had been warned that they were the best of the associate countries and we were under tremendous

pressure on and off the field.

‘Bob Woolmer’s death had clearly affected everyone. You don’t want them to forget it but there was still a game of cricket to play.’

The job was duly done in fairly perfunctory fashion and the truth is that his team have to play much better in the coming Super Eight phase if they are to have any chance of reaching the semi-finals.

As Fletcher acknowledged, the hope must be that, with the shame of an early homecoming avoided, they can let their natural abilities flow.

He said: ‘Now that some of the pressure has been lifted they can express themselves more. We have to perform like we did in those last three games in Australia when we won the CB series.’

In fact, England’s first Super Eight game is another of the no-win variety as they face Ireland, who have slotted into Pakistan’s place in what is a league situation with the top four making the semi-finals.

The Irish must be beaten and then England surely have to win at least one of their two games next week in Antigua, against Sri Lanka and Australia, to glean any chance of making the final quartet.

Fletcher pinpointed two areas in which his side have to improve in order for them to step up: ‘It’s important from the batting point of view that the top four build partnerships and give us the platform we need. In the bowling, a little more consistency is required.’

He could also have mentioned some slack passages of fielding, and mistakes such as Ed Joyce’s simple spillage of Steve Tikolo on Saturday following Kenya’s curious decision to bat first.

The trouble is that England still look an aggressive top-order batsman (Marcus Trescothick) and at least one penetrating bowler (Steve Harmison, if he could ever have brought himself to master the white ball) light.

It was also alarming to hear that one reason for Ravi Bopara’s promotion on Saturday ahead of Jamie Dalrymple was the desire to give him more experience (in the middle of a World Cup!) should either Paul Collingwood or Andrew Flintoff get injured.

To look around at other matches is to see the one-day game played at a greater lick than England’s finest have mustered, and the favourites look in ominously good form.

Of the eight survivors, Australia and New Zealand have the great start of carrying through two points gained from their group matches against other major nations and, given the presence of Bangladesh and Ireland in the coming phase, will be hard to catch.

West Indies carry foward the group points secured against Ireland, but will have to play South Africa (unlike Australia) and England (unlike New Zealand) as will Sri Lanka, who have the bounty gleaned against under-rated Bangladesh.

However, West Indies have won every game, looked solid and are well-placed to gain momentum, while Sri Lanka have so far justified the smart money placed on them before the tournament and look a well-balanced team.

By losing to Australia in Saturday’s runfest, South Africa will not have done much to shake off the tag of being chokers when it matters most. Bangladesh have it in them to cause more upsets on slower pitches while the Irish are most welcome and will enjoy the Caribbean craic.

One interesting aspect now is that the tournament moves on to places like Grenada, Antigua and Guyana, all of which will feature wickets that are relatively new and untested.

Nobody quite knows how they will play and in Guyana there are doubts about the state of readiness, with some early reports also expressing fears about the pitch at Antigua’s new ground.

The likelihood is that England will have to win five out of six games to guarantee a semi-final spot, and, in order to do that, will have to discover previously untapped depths of talent and resourcefulness.